Selective ticket collector



1m 1939. R. w. Bu 2,1 2,49

SELECTIVE TICKET COLLECTOR I Original Filed Aug. 13, 1935 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 g INVENTOR PALPH WBuno ATTORNEY Jan. 3, 1939. R. w. BUDD 2,1

SELECTIVE TICKET COLLECTOR Original Filed Aug. 13, 1955 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Q HWHM INVENTOR PALPH W 15000 7 BY W ATTORN EY f V A Jan. 3, 1939. Rfw. BUDD 2,142,490

SELECTIVE TICKET COLLECTOR Original Filed Aug. 13, 1955 I: Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR PAL H W Buoo ATTORNEY Patented Jan. 3, 1939 UNITED STATES SELECTIVE TICKET COLLECTOR Ralph W. Budd, Wyckoff, N. J., assignor to United Research Corporation, Burbank, Calif., a corporation. of Delaware Continuation of application Serial No. 35,930,

August 13, 1935.

This application July 19,

1937, Serial No. 154,330

9 Claims.

This invention relates to ticket or token collectors of the chopper type and particularly to a collector which segregates tickets or tokens into separate receptacles over selective predetermined periods of time.

In places where tickets or tokens are sold and collected, it has been customary to have the doorman place the tickets or ticket stubs in chopper boxes which mutilate them to prevent fraud by resale between the seller or cashier and doorman. Usually these boxes have moving blades which tear or crumble the ticket stubs.

The present invention is directed to a collector of the above type which not only tends to diminish collusion between the cashier and doorman, but also provides automatic means for indicating sales or receipts over certain periods of time. The invention eliminates the human element heretofore required for checking returns over selective predetermined periods. It also includes an announcing system for indicating to the cashier or other official the time of changeover, the fact that a collector of this type is operating having acertain psychological effect which in itself is a deterrent to petty purloining.

The present application is. a continuation of my copending application Serial No. 35,930, filed August 13th, 1935.

The details of the invention will be more fully understood by reference to the following description read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which Fig. l is a front elevational view of a collecting device embodying the invention.

Figs. 2 and 3 are plan and side elevational views, respectively, of the dial mechanism of the device.

Fig. 4 is a diagrammatic perspective arrangement of the receptacles and operating mechanism.

Fig. 5 is a plan view of the receptacles and their compartment; and

Fig. 6 is a partial elevational view of the collector showing the distributing element thereof.

Referring to Fig. 1, a cabinet 5 has a door 6 with an opening 1 therein, through which the particular receptacle receiving the tickets is indicated, and a semi-circular opening 8 through which the position of the controlling dial and the time of collection is indicated. The usual chopper box top ll] having glass side walls and vanes therein is centrally disposed on top of the cabinet for receiving the tickets or stubs.

Referring now to the remaining figures in which the same element is identified by the same number, a biased funnel distributing member I2 is fixedly attached to a vertical shaft having a bevel gear l3 thereon. The shaft and funnel are rotatably supported by a bracket l I mounted on a cross-member l6 having openings 19 therein. The gear I3 is meshed with a gear M on a shaft l5 driven by a gear I! connected to a clockwork mechanism in a housing I 8. The housing I8 is attached to the frame 43 by means of connecting plates 44 and 46. Eight wedgeshaped receptacles 20 which may be of metal, cardboard, or other suitable material, are disposed under the funnel I2 and aligned with openings [9 for receiving the tickets passing through the funnel in accordance with the angular position of the funnel.

Also on the shaft I5 is a commutator 23 having interconnected conducting segments 45 and contact brushes 24 connected through a source of energy 25 to an alarm device such as a buzzer 26. Mounted on the gear I! are four equi-angularly disposed pins 28 which contact a ratchet wheel 29 connected with an octagonal indicator 3!]. The sides of the indicator 30 are numbered one to eight, inclusive, to correspond with the eight wedgeshaped receptacles 20.

The actuating means within the housing I8 comprises the usual clock mechanism having cer tain elements thereof slightly modified, such as a spring 32 being wound through a series of gears from a key shaft 33, and a spring 35 being wound through a series of gears from the key shaft 36. The spring 35 is the usual strike spring and furnishes the power for rotating the funnel l2 while the spring 32 is the usual time spring and furnishes the power for rotating the dial 38 instead of a clock hand and on which is inscribed the daytime hours and the night hours in respective half segments thereof.

Adjustably mounted on the rim of the dial 38 are a plurality of numbered buttons 40 which may be eight in number to correspond with the eight receptacles 20. These adjustable buttons are positioned along the rim of the dial 38 so as to contact a lever arm 42 at selected times instead of each hour, or half hour, the contact thereof tripping the strike mechanism in a manner conventional in strike clocks, as is apparent to one skilled in the art. A mechanism for producing such tripping action is disclosed in the patent to Wehinger No. 1,496,502. This tripping action causes rotation of the shaft l5 to move the funnel I 2, geared thereto, through an angle of 45, thus bringing the lower end of the funnel over the next adjacent receptacle 20. The rotation of the funnel is stopped by the strike mechanism in the usual manner except that each strike period has been made equal for all hours or for each trip. The dial is on a shaft geared to rotate once every twenty-four hours and may therefore be divided into day and night sections, as indicated in Fig. 1, the dark section representing night and the light section representing day. As the outlet of the funnel is transferred from one receptacle to the next, the contact springs 24 are short circuited by the conducting portions 45 of commutator 23 energizing the alarm 26 which indicates to either the cashier or an attendant, or both, the fact that a new period of collection has begun.

The above-described collector may be operated in several manners, in accordance with what data is desired. For instance, when used in the theatre where difierent rates of admission are charged for morning, afternoon and evening performances the buttons 40 may be set to change the receptacles at the hour of rate change and thus segregate and check the tickets sold over any particular rate period. Also, the collector may be set to collect tickets over equal time intervals, and thus determine the attendance curve over a definite period of time. The receptacles 20 when made of stiff paper or cardboard may be in the form of closing containers and the tickets and stubs sealed therein, at the theatre and mailed to a central offce for counting.

To prevent theft and the reselling of the tickets, the buttons 49 may be adjusted by an inspector, the serial number of the tickets being taken down at the sound of the changeover buzzer. In this case, the indicators of the device may be entirely or partially covered, the settings being thus unknown to the cashier and doorman. When only the left hand half of the exposed dial is covered, the last changeover time will be indicated but the coming time will not. In this manner a resale may be discovered if a ticket or stub thereof sold during one period is found in a receptacle of a later .period. Even though a ticket could be returned during a particular period, the fact that the coming time of changeover is unknown serves as a strong deterrent to fraudulent practice.

What is claimed is: r

1. A collector for tickets and tokens comprising a plurality of receptacles arranged adjacent one another, a hollow member adapted to direct said tickets and tokens into any particular one of said receptacles, automatic means for moving said hollow member from receptacle to receptacle at predetermined time intervals, means for indicating the particular receptacle adapted to receive said tickets and tokens, and means for indicating the movement of said member-at a remote point.

2. A ticket collector comprising a clock mechanism, a funnel attached to said mechanism and adapted to be rotated thereby, a plurality of individual means positioned under the path of said funnel for receiving tickets passing through said funnel, means for adjusting said clock mechanism to rotate said funnel at certain times, said means including a twenty-four hour dial having stops adjustable around its circumference and means for remotely indicating the time of movement of said funnel.

3. Ina system for the collection of tickets, the combination of a plurality of individual receptacles, a member for distributing said tickets into any one of said receptacles, a clock mechanism adapted to rotate said distributing member,-automatic means for predetermining the time said distributing member is positioned over any one particular receptacle, an indicator wheel operated by said mechanism for visibly indicating the particular receptacle receiving tickets at any particular time, and means operated by said mechanism for audibly indicating the time when said distributing member moves from one receptacle to the next.

4. A collector for tickets and tokens comprising a plurality of receptacles, means for distributing said tickets and tokens into any one of said receptacles, automatic means for aligning said distributing means with another receptacle after a predetermined time interval, means for adjusting said aligning means for varying the length of said time interval, and means for indicating the movement of said distributing means at a remote point.

5. A system in accordance with claim 4 in which said collector mechanism includes a twenty-four hour dial having adjustable stops positioned around the circumference thereof for determining the time within which the collector is over any particular receptacle.

6. A collector for tickets and the like comprising a casing, a support in said casing, a funnel in said casing, means on said support for rotatably supporting said funnel for movement about a vertical axis, said funnel having entrance and exit openings therein, said entrance opening being concentric with said axis and said exit opening beingeccentric with said axis, means communieating said entrance opening of said funnel with the exterior of said casing for guiding said tickets into said funnel, an array of receptacles positioned within said casing in ticket receiving relation with said exit opening of said funnel, a horizontal shaft rotatably supported by said support between said path and the adjacent end of said array of receptacles, gear means between said shaft and said funnel for transmitting rotation from said shaft to said funnel, a clock mechanism, gear means for transmitting rotation from said clock mechanism to said shaft, means controlling said clock mechanism for successively positioning said funnel in alignment with successive ones of said receptacles, and means for determining the length of time said funnelis over anyparticular one of said receptacles; said last mentioned means comprising a rotatable time indicating dial operatively connected to said clock mechanism, stops adjusta'bly positioned around said dial, and means adapted to be actuated by said stops for controlling said first mentioned controlling means.

7. A ticket collector comprising a casing, a ticket guiding means in said casing and communicating with the exterior of said casing, a plu rality of receptacles in said casing, registering means in said casing for successively registering said guiding means with successive ones of said receptacles, a motor for driving said registering means, a door on said casing for permitting access to said receptacles, a window in said casing, a rotatable time indicating dial in said casing and visible from the exterior of said casing through said window, a second motor, mechanical coupling means connecting said second motor to said dial,

.andadjustable means around said dial controlling said first mentioned motor for effecting said registration step by step at predetermined time inter- Vals indicated on said dial.

8. In a system for the collection of tickets, the combination of a plurality of individual receptac1es, a member for distributing said tickets into any one of said receptacles, a motor adapted to rotate said distributing member, automatic means comprising a second motor for controlling said first motor controlling the time said distributing member is positioned over any one particular receptacle, an indicator operated by said first motor for visibly indicating the particular receptacle receiving tickets at any particular time, and means operated by said first motor for audibly indicating the time when said distributing member moves from one receptacle to the next.

9. A collector for tickets and the like comprising a casing, a support in said casing, a funnel in said casing, means on said support for rotatably supporting said funnel for movement about a vertical axis, said funnel having entrance and exit openings therein, said entrance opening being concentric with said axis and said exit opening being eccentric with said axis, means communicating said entrance opening of said funnel with to said shaft, and means for determining the length of time said funnel is over any particular one of said receptacles; said last mentioned means comprising a rotatable time indicating dial, a motor for operating said dial, stops adjustably positioned around said dial, and means adapted to be actuated by said stops for controlling said first mentioned motor.

RALPH W. BUDD. 

